CASTEN CALLS ON ROSKAM TO RETURN CHEMICAL LOBBY MONEY

(Downers Grove, IL) October 26, 2018 – Today, Sixth District Congressional Candidate Sean Casten called on Peter Roskam to return the money he’s received from the chemical lobby. According to newly filed FEC reports, the American Chemistry Council (ACC) gave Roskam a sizable campaign check on October 3rd, just eight days after requesting that the EPA reconsider the risk value of ethylene oxide – the cancer causing chemical released by Sterigenics in Willowbrook – which the EPA recently acknowledged as a known human carcinogen.

“Peter Roskam’s silence on this issue speaks volume and now we know who paid for that silence,” said Casten. “Peter Roskam should immediately pay back every cent that the American Chemistry Council has spent on his campaign.”

Revelations about the chemical lobby’s continued support of Peter Roskam follow a groundbreaking exposé from the Chicago Tribune documenting Peter Roskam’s close ties to Sterigenics and the massive financial support he has received from the chemical lobby. As the Tribune documented, the American Chemistry Council has spent $209,000 on TV ads thanking Peter Roskam “for championing their priorities,” and they’ve funded his campaigns for over a decade.

The chemical industry has given more than $185,000 to Peter Roskam over the past decade and the oil and gas industry has given Roskam an additional $452,570, including $70,400 from Koch Industries.

Peter Roskam has refused to answer any questions about his financial backer’s efforts to reduce oversight on Sterigenics, his consistent support for their legislative agenda in Congress, and his terrible record of protecting the environment and public health.